LONDON — You’re never far from a camera in Britain, a country that has accepted the presence of millions of surveillance cameras in its streets, shopping centers and public spaces.
But for the villagers of Broughton in southern England, the roving eye of Google was one camera too far. A gaggle of residents in the affluent hamlet formed a human chain to turn away a car shooting images for Google Street View, which allows Internet users to see high-quality photos of houses and streets around the world.
Broughton’s tiny victory for people power is the latest sign of concern about the U.S. Internet juggernaut’s collection of vast amounts of data, from satellite photos on Google Earth to the searches performed by Internet users and the shopping habits of e-mail users.
The Thames Valley Police said residents felt the Google employee’s “presence was an intrusion of their privacy.”
